Unspeakable
by SnarkWrangler
Summary: When Sasuke flees Orochimaru's kingdom, the hunt for his wayward brother teaches him the price of rebellion. For in order to find him he may have to do the unspeakable. NaruSasu, AU.
1. Chapter 1

Unspeakable

**A/N: **This has been sitting on my desktop for months. I guess I've been keeping it under the delusion that it'll get edited someday. Yeah, hasn't happened. It's a weird one. I had a lot of fun with crazy imagery, so be forewarned.

Unspeakable

Chapter 1

The cave was dark, its wide mouth offering little light. The sturdy limestone walls were gouged by years of changing tides, and every pocket in the rock was inhabited with a cocktail of invertebrates and crustacea. Thick algae smothered the stone like the heavy walls of a padded cell, and sparse, glistening clumps of red-and-green weed sprang from crevices, swaying languorously. Occasionally, tiny clusters of bubbles would escape the plants and float buoyantly up to join the trapped orb of air in the roof of the cave.

The largest inhabitant of the cave lay on his side, resting peaceably on a stretch of sand. His eyes were closed and his gills fluttered slowly, as though he was asleep. His hair was pulled back into a tail behind his skull, revealing an ear pierced artfully with fish bones. A webbed hand drifted sleepily downward and he scratched lazily at a barnacle that was nesting on his tail. The damn thing was trying to dig deeper, boring a little hole in his scales like it would in a rock. The merman flicked a fin in discomfort, the movement disturbing a small shoal of silver fish.

They swam off in flashing pirouettes, spiraling away from the resting merman and parting like water around the reason for his faked slumber. He had a guest.

"Shikamaru…" The intruder was floating at the mouth of the cave and his voice was deep and testy, "I know you're awake."

The other merman's eyes cracked open. He let out a small sigh. "Now I am."

The intruder scowled. He flipped his tail, twisting as he sped forward, circling around the other merman.

"Do you have it?" He hissed, searching his face with black eyes.

Shikamaru rose slowly from the sand and sighed again, this time making it long and heavy-hearted. "Yes."

The intruder stared at him expectantly, ribbons of black hair swirling around his face.

Another sigh and Shikamaru drifted to a ledge, seating himself beside a large green anemone. He patted its gelatinous body and the tentacles flinched back. "You're sure you want to go through with this?"

"Yes." A pause. The intruder licked his lips before flicking his eyes to meet Shikamaru's. "I need to do this."

The barnacle on Shikamaru's tail extended its feathery feeder, licking at the surrounding water. The merman closed his eyes. "Sasuke…"

"The Secret Police is expanding," the intruder interrupted quietly.

"So I've heard." Shikamaru said, dragging his voice. He paused, then he held up a webbed finger. "Question."

Sasuke's eyes grew wary.

"Those bruises," Shikamaru gestured to the merman's wrist. "Have they got anything to do with the sudden urgency of this decision?"

Sasuke clamped a fist over the discoloration as though cauterizing a wound. His lips pulled back into a snarl. "We need this revolution," he hissed, "If my brother was here, he would put an end to our peoples' suffering."

"Sasuke…"

"I will bring him back. Give me this chance and I'll return with an army." His eyes widened and his nostrils flared, wild with rage and a veiled fear.

Shikamaru's eyes snapped onto black ones, staring long and hard. "Don't look at sand like it's pearls," he said evenly. He paused again, gaze resting on the poorly concealed bruises. He spoke lightly though he tread on thin ice, "His majesty wants a new body, doesn't he."

It wasn't a question.

Silence. And then Shikamaru's voice was quiet, "He went after you. He wants you, like he wanted your brother." Shikamaru watched Sasuke carefully as he put the pieces together. He spoke softly, as though talking to himself. "He's going to take you by force. He tried already; you barely escaped. That's where you got your bruises." A pause, and his tone changed. "You came straight here. He knows you're gone. We don't have much time."

The lazy merman pushed away from the ledge he was resting on. His swimming was lopsided and laborious, courtesy of the long scar discoloring his scales. He crossed the cave and threw open an old, rotting chest, ignoring the billowing clouds of dust as he rummaged through it.

"I lost three messengers getting this," he muttered, "Don't waste the opportunity, Uchiha." He glanced up, clutching a few small glass bottles. "The transformation won't last long; a few months if we're lucky. It will only be temporary unless you can solidify it with a human. I think you know what that means." He arched an eyebrow pointedly at the other merman.

Black eyes flashed dangerously and the water around him seemed to chill. "You're saying I should choose slavery to one race or the other?"

Shikamaru slipped the bottles and a few other tools into a pouch that hung around his body, cinching it absently. He shook his head. "Getting fucked by a human won't bind you to their will. Like I said, it solidifies the transformation, nothing more." Shikamaru pushed off and began to swim awkwardly toward the mouth of the cave. "We need to get closer to the surface."

Sasuke turned with a few lithe pumps of his tail and reached the struggling merman, catching his elbow for efficiency's sake rather than courtesy. Together they shot through the water, two man-sized missals flying from the mouth of Shikamaru's cave.

The cave opened into murky water. Faint light filtered down from the surface, revealing the swaying silhouettes of a few naked poles of bull kelp. Behind them the rocky wall plummeted to a muddy floor, writhing and alive with worms. Sasuke pumped his tail, bringing them up as quickly as pressure allowed. Both mermen were on guard, watching for signs of life through the gloom.

The water around them lightened as they ascended, speckled with drifting motes of plant and animal life. They rose; arms twined together, tails working. Ripples of reflected light danced across their faces and glinted off their scales.

They were near the harbor. Here, hollowed cliffs marked the shoreline and sea-stained boulders pierced the air like breaching sharks.

Two dark heads popped up, bobbing over the swells. Both had a moment of discomfort as their throats readjusted amphibiously. Cartilege popped as windpipes opened. Shikamaru sucked in the sea air with a rusty ease, savoring the alien taste. His gills fluttered closed, useless.

Sasuke was having more trouble. His near-virgin lungs resisted expansion, and it took a considerable amount of angry effort on Sasuke's part to get them working properly. He breathed harshly, nostrils flared and eyes glittering, his dark hair hanging in snaky wet ropes around his face.

Shikamaru was moving again, pursing his lips to hold in the air as he sank beneath the surface. He appeared a few feet away, beside one of the black boulders that stretched out of the water. Sasuke followed, careful to keep his head up and his lungs working. When he was within earshot, Shikamaru began to speak.

"You will be mute," he said bluntly, closing a webbed hand around a small protrusion of rock. "It's a side-effect of the potion."

"Fantastic," Sasuke snorted, stubborn lungs making his voice husky.

Shikamaru yawned, waving his free hand dismissively. "Don't worry about finding someone to 'secure your human-hood' with; you'll have legs by then. Just flash a bit of thigh and he won't be able to resist." The remark could have been lewd if Shikamaru hadn't sounded so bored.

Sasuke rolled his eyes, but by this time Shikamaru was fiddling with his pouch, drawing out a small bowl with a funnel-shaped end. He carefully measured and mixed powders and liquids from the little bottles he carried, until the substance in the bowl was putrid and brown. He handed it brusquely to Sasuke.

"Drink."

Sasuke eyed the concoction unhappily. Squinting suddenly, he leaned his head in closer. "There's a hair in this."

"It's supposed to be there. You're stalling. Drink."

Sasuke grimaced, but tossed it back. The sludge was thick and pasty, and stuck to the inside of his mouth. Shikamaru watched the other merman intently as he came to terms with the vile taste. Minutes passed. Waves crushed themselves against the boulders, exploding into a confetti of froth, and fat white gulls cruised overhead like tourists, filling the air with their eerie cries.

Abruptly, Shikamaru opened his mouth. "We'll keep in touch," he said. "I'll send Kakashi to keep track of you, make sure-" He broke off when Sasuke convulsed.

Sasuke was on fire. His tail was burning, the bones growing, fusing, separating. He could feel his skin split, his muscle tear. The gills on his neck were sealing, closing up like two fleshy zippers. Searing pain shot his mind and he began to sink, slipping beneath the surface like a stone that stopped skipping.

The water was wet in a way that was completely alien to him. It washed through his mouth like a cold, intrusive, salty stranger. His flesh sculpted itself into a new form, the scales shedding away to reveal smooth, pale skin. The heat faded and his skin seared with a polar shade of freezing. Needles of cold stabbed him, piercing into new flesh. His chest spasmed, his young lungs reminding him to breathe. He gulped, and the cold, alien wetness clogged his throat. He choked, thrashing, sinking, drowning...

Then a strong hand was on his bicep, yanking him up until his head burst from the water. He hunched, hacking and spewing liquid from his lungs until he could finally breathe again. He shook, trembling with adrenaline and chill. He felt hands, two of them, pushing him, heaving him up onto the black boulder. His fingers, no longer webbed, scrabbled against the rough stone as he tried to pull himself up. He felt impossibly heavy.

Tiny creatures shrunk away from his laborious ascent. Crabs scuttled into crevices in the rock, anemones puckered up around their tentacles, and barnacles scraped the tender flesh of his stomach. Sasuke dragged himself forward by his arms, fingers chafing on the rock, his legs trailing uselessly behind.

Eventually, he curled up among the white bird stains on the black boulder. He tucked his knees up to his chin and huddled his arms around himself. He was cold. Damn, he was so cold.

His hair was dry and spiked angrily. His skin had also dried, but he was losing heat fast. The sun was low in the sky, squatting behind glowing, fruit-colored clouds. Cold, bruising wind came screaming from the open ocean, pinning him against the boulder and whipping a chill into his bones.

He didn't see the ship until it was passing him. It sloshed by, lumbering and creaking like the Trojan horse. He shivered numbly, slumping farther against the rock. There was shouting, but he barely heard it. The noise echoed around his mind, bouncing off it but never quite penetrating. The cold seemed to be going away. His teeth still chattered and his body shook, but the terrible stinging, stabbing cold had become an almost soothing tingle. He was drifting, his mind heavy, sleepy. He barely registered the splash, the slap of oars. He didn't understand when he was grabbed – the tactile signals took too long to reach his brain – instead he saw rather than felt the world fall away.

Strong arms scooped him away from the rock, away from the cold that sucked on his bones. A warm hand cradled behind his feeble neck, stroking the hair it found there. He shuddered, drawing tight against the heat he could feel through a layer of cloth.

There were words then, voices, but they rumbled and jumbled together, nonsensical in Sasuke's befuddled state. He was moving, swaying, and then he found himself surrounded by a delicious dry heat that warmed him, thawed him slowly from the outside in.

**A/N: **Okay, now to clarify a couple things. In the "merpeople-world," sex has a sort of magic to it that binds the participants together (even if they're unwilling). It's sort of a slightly more tangible version of the usual emotional connection. Right. Anyway, Orochimaru has found a way to manipulate that connection in such a way that it gives him some psychological power over his partner, almost like a kind of bondage or slavery. He's using this ability to build a sort of "Secret Police." Sasuke is freaked out because he was almost "recruited." Maybe that clears things up a little?

Yeah, I know the transformation was a little gross (I'm told it's pretty unsexy), but I like it so it's staying. Feel free to comment/complain about it, though. And yes, this is inspired by Disney's "The Little Mermaid." Not in the sense that I'll be replicating it, just that I'm definitely drawing from it when I write.

So, what do you think? Should I continue this or is it a waste of time?

7


	2. Chapter 2

Unspeakable

Chapter 2 ~

The ship was a massive, hulking creature. Its curved belly hung low, sunk deep beneath the surface and encrusted with creatures. Above, heavy masts groaned at the flailing wind, tall and thick, their brine-stiffened sails bloated with wind.

The ship was sailing near the coast, in a sort of no-man's-land between land and open ocean. The cliffs were raw and dark, naked and brutal. The water was rocky, with treacherous boulders that lurked beneath high tide. It would have sailed farther out, but new treaties with the Sea King kept it from the open ocean.

The men on board were slow and relaxed, passing time with idle games and chatter. A medley of the ship's crew and the Prince's bodyguards lounged sleepily. The harsh wind carried them north, back to their homeland.

Dark water rose, pressing the ship heavily to one side before passing beneath it. Playing cards and poker chips spilled off a table and spun across the deck as the ship leaned passively. A cry and a scrambling. Hardened men became young boys, chasing marbles across the floor.

Across the deck, at the far end behind the cabin, two figures stood by the edge of the ship. One rested his elbows on the rail, his body leaning, tilted, and his neck curved as he stared down at the thick, grey-green water. His skin was a rich, chocolaty brown, darkened during the voyage, and he had hair two shades short of black. The hair was cropped short and it whipped around like a dog at the end of its tether, chased by the wind. His gaze was oddly unfocused, mesmerized by the shifting of the water.

His companion stood a few paces back, swaying gently to keep his feet, his arms crossed and his eyes skittering along the distant cliffs. His stance was tense and pensive, habitually so, though he felt calm.

They were the Prince and the head of his guard. Childhood friends, they were raised together like corn and squash, one covering the ground and the other reaching for the sky. The two were dressed blandly, for traveling, and shared silence like one might share bread. Comfortably. A piece for each to chew on.

The man leaning on the rail shifted slightly, lifting his thoughtful gaze to the black protrusions of rock. Behind him, the guard dropped his arms from their pretzel and shrugged his shoulders, swinging his arms a little to keep circulation flowing. His blue eyes made one last sweep of the cliffs before they settled on the back of his friend's head. The Prince at the rail stiffened, surprise exhaling through his lips, and the guard tensed, striding forward protectively, ready to fight or defend.

"Look," the Prince hissed, his dark eyes wide.

The guard followed his gaze, wary and alert, to the sight of a body amongst the boulders.

_Dead._

"There's someone down there," the Prince said quickly. The guard was shaking his head, but his charge called out, "Quick, a lifeboat! Man overboard!"

There was a great shuffling as the men on deck crowded noisily against the rail. Then a still silence crept in to smother the gathering. Wordlessly, the men turned away from the body at sea and shuffled back to their tasks. It was quiet, as though the ship had drowned.

The Prince ground his teeth in confusion. He turned to face the Captain. "We will take him onto the ship," he said coldly.

The Captain met the Prince's hard stare, a chilling expression on his weathered face. "It's a refugee of the Sea Kingdom."

"I want him on board," he said.

"All respect, but that thing isn't human. Think before you reel it in."

The Prince's face darkened. "You should know better than to patronize me with your superstitions, old man."

"Boy," the Captain said wearily, his eyes wandering to sea, "I've been sailing these waters longer than you've been alive. Heed an old man's words – these are troubled times, and to invite the devil home…"

"He will sleep in my chambers. Have a pallet prepared. Naruto," he signaled his guard, "go with them. I want this man alive."

The Captain watched him, resignation dimming his eyes. He turned to the eerily quiet crew and spoke. "Bring it to the deck," he said softly, and a few men followed the guard to the lifeboats.

* * *

The small dinghy plummeted with a _smack_ to toss on the churning dark water, and the Prince watched the men row out. The crew and Captain had left him alone on one side of the deck. He rubbed a hand over his face, wondering if he'd made the right choice.

The Sea King controlled the oceanic trade routes, exacting tribute from traders – a feat that was severely damaging the economy of the Prince's kingdom. Never before had the entire sea been united under a single ruler, and the effects were staggering. The Sea King restricted the Land's zealous traders and consumers, making his kingdom independent while the Land kingdoms continued to covet oceanic commodities. As the Sea withdrew into itself, access to fish and oceanic trade and travel became severely limited above water.

But to venture onto land from the sea was a taboo of underwater culture – a shameful, damning deed. To find someone willing to transcend this alienation was uncommon, and rather than hate him for what he was – what he might be – the Prince hoped he might be able to use him to discover an in on the Underwater Kingdom.

The Prince watched for the dull gold of his guard's blond head as the dinghy was dragged aboard. It hit the deck and those aboard staggered out, the wind snapping around them and seawater slicking the floor. The crewmembers ignored the guard and his cargo as they finished securing the dinghy and slunk below deck.

Naruto was wet. His pants, rolled up to the knee, were soaked and speckled with sand from the waves, and the body curled into his chest was stained with white trails of dried salt.

He didn't look too different, the Prince thought as he followed Naruto and the limp body of their new charge to his chambers, than anyone else. His form was artful, built to swim, the skin pale as though it had never seen the sun.

"It's a good thing I saw him when I did," the Prince said, "Any later and the sun would already have set."

"He has hypothermia," Naruto said soberly. "He may not make the night."

The Prince tensed. "Come on, Naruto," he said quickly, "let's get him on the bed."

"Kiba," Naruto said and the Prince stopped. "Why all this? These men lost their livelihood when Orochimaru closed off the sea. If this is a lesson in humility, it is ill-timed."

With a quick glance around, the Prince closed the distance between them so they could talk with an illusion of privacy. "Think of the opportunities, Naruto. No one flees the Sea without a reason. This person, to know what he knows – imagine the power of that knowledge. We would no longer be known as the Kingdom of Dogs – what if we could put an end to Orochimaru's rule!"

"He's a child, Kiba, barely older than you are," Naruto said, arranging the boy's form beneath a wealth of blankets.

"I'll pretend I didn't hear you say that," Kiba said coolly. He watched as Naruto packed the boy with insulation and began to strip off his own clothing. "What are you doing," he asked.

"He needs to get warm," Naruto said, shucking off his rough travel shirt as if it were the most natural thing in the world. "You should also undress. He'll need the both of us if he's going to stand a chance."

Kiba stared down at the figure that lay unnaturally still beneath the swaddling of blankets. The little bit of skin he could see was tinged with blue. Then the heir to a throne of dogs began to untie his tunic.


End file.
